I think many of us have at least read this famous book once. Oliver Twist was published in 1838, and it is considered one of his first famous works. This novel describes the dark side of London and the hardships that Oliver goes through. Oliver is a miserable child that works at a workhouse. However, he can't stand the hardships and unfairness of the conditions of the workhouse. So, he decides to run away only to find that London is a vicious city. Oliver has to make decisions constantly and meets diverse people on the streets. Once, he decides to join a group of pickpockets, but Mr. Brownlow kindly saves and raises him. It seems like he's living a happy, but a prostitute and a murderer kidnaps Oliver. Oliver is forced to rob a house with a group of burglars again and he gets shot while robbing. However, the owners of the house benevolently cures him, but the gang of robs hatch a scheme against him. One of them is Mr. Monks, who is a half-brother of Oliver and tries to kill Oliver to get the inheritance for himself. However, the gang of robs get arrested and are sent to jail. The novel resolves by Monks going to America with his share of the inheritance and Oliver gets adopted by Mr. Brownlow. Oliver finds out a lot about himself during the journey through London city.
Significance
Charles Dickens is famous for his works getting influenced by his emotions. For example, in 1851, when his dad and one of his daughter dies, he begins to write "dark" novels. The "dark" novels represent the emotional state of Dickens, and is often followed with a tragic resolution. He is often referred to as the "giant" of English literature due to many famous works he produced during his life. Although he didn't start writing until 1833, he wrote many famous novels, and many were remade as films. Before 1833, he worked as an editor and reporter for many magazines and news papers. Despite the seriousness of his former courier, his imagination is very good and has fascinating ideas. He is considered a talented journalists as well as a talented writer. His description of London is very descriptive and detailed. Partly due to his former courier, was very interested in injustice of law and society. His interest in these areas are also reflected in his works, as he touches on those areas in his novels.
Further Research
http://www.victorianweb.org/victorian/vn/litov.html
This source is reliable since it is an .org site. It means that it does not try to earn money like .com sites and is more reliable due to the fact that it tries to provide accurate information rather than money being the motive of providing information. Also the last modification date for this site in 15 July 2009, which is quite recent and the information is not outdated. The site has also received international honors from Australia, Italy, New Zealand, Russia, Singapore, the UK, and the US. This proves it is being trusted by many countries and is being acknowledged very widely as a credible source of information. Also this site is created by George P. Landow, a professor of English and History of Art at Brown University. Apparently, he is an expert at this field of topic thus making this site credible.
http://www.helsinki.fi/kasv/nokol/dickens.html
This source is reliable since the author of the site is clearly labeled. The author is Ritva Raesmaa, who is a retired school-librarian from The Teacher Training School of The University of Helsinki, Finland. She is dedicated to reading and books, and she knows very well about Charles Dickens and his works. The last modification date for this site is 1997, which is okay for this occasion since Dickens died before 1997. So the information is relatively recent and accurate.
Citations "Charles Dickens - Complete works of Charles Dickens, Biography, Quotes." Charles Dickens - Complete works of Charles Dickens, Biography, Quotes. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Feb. 2010.
Derek Powazek. "Please Sir, I want some more". 2008. plain view. Web. 22 Feb. 2010.
Sony Pictures. Oliver Twist Movie Poster. 2005. About.com. Web. 22 Feb. 2010
"Summary of Oliver Twist." Det Humanistiske Fakultet. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Feb. 2010.
Charles Dickens
Famous Work
Oliver TwistSignificance
Further Research
http://www.victorianweb.org/victorian/vn/litov.htmlThis source is reliable since it is an .org site. It means that it does not try to earn money like .com sites and is more reliable due to the fact that it tries to provide accurate information rather than money being the motive of providing information. Also the last modification date for this site in 15 July 2009, which is quite recent and the information is not outdated. The site has also received international honors from Australia, Italy, New Zealand, Russia, Singapore, the UK, and the US. This proves it is being trusted by many countries and is being acknowledged very widely as a credible source of information. Also this site is created by George P. Landow, a professor of English and History of Art at Brown University. Apparently, he is an expert at this field of topic thus making this site credible.
http://www.helsinki.fi/kasv/nokol/dickens.html
This source is reliable since the author of the site is clearly labeled. The author is Ritva Raesmaa, who is a retired school-librarian from The Teacher Training School of The University of Helsinki, Finland. She is dedicated to reading and books, and she knows very well about Charles Dickens and his works. The last modification date for this site is 1997, which is okay for this occasion since Dickens died before 1997. So the information is relatively recent and accurate.
Citations
"Charles Dickens - Complete works of Charles Dickens, Biography, Quotes." Charles Dickens - Complete works of Charles Dickens, Biography, Quotes. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Feb. 2010.
Derek Powazek. "Please Sir, I want some more". 2008. plain view. Web. 22 Feb. 2010.
Sony Pictures. Oliver Twist Movie Poster. 2005. About.com. Web. 22 Feb. 2010
"Summary of Oliver Twist." Det Humanistiske Fakultet. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Feb. 2010.